Identity Questions
by Twenty-Two Cents
Summary: After the events of Identity Crisis, Danny contemplates whether he is a single person with two different sides, or if he is two separate personalities trapped within the same body.


**This is set a couple of days after Identity Crisis. I hated the way Danny's split personality was depicted in that particular episode, so I've changed it a bit to what I think it should have been like. Actually, I'm contemplating writing an entire fic about how I believe IC should have gone. Maybe when I have time I will, but this summer's been uber busy. Anyway, here's my one-shot in which Danny contemplates whether he is a whole person or two halves in one body based on the events of IC, and a small mention of The Ultimate Enemy as well.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom, or anything else, for that matter. I'm just a random bored teenager with an obsession with DP and a love for writing.**

**Thanks to ToniPendragon for pointing out that The Ultimate Enemy happened _after_ Identity Crisis. My bad. And I know that I should probably take out the part where Danny references his experiences from that episode, but I think it fits too well to remove. So, just for the purposes of this fic, let's pretend TUE happened a little before IC. **

Danny's POV

_It's late at night, one-thirty, maybe, and I'm laying wide awake in my bed, staring at my ceiling. Tonight's probably the only ghost-free night I'll get for another month, and I can't even enjoy it. Something's been bugging me ever since I split myself with the Fenton Ghost Catcher. This question's been running circles around my mind, and I know I won't be able to rest until I answer it for myself: Am I a whole person with two different sides, or am I two personalities trapped in the same body? I honestly don't know, so I'll try to figure this out by mentally running over the details of the incident._

_First of all, I remember the feeling I experienced as I flew through the Ghost Catcher. It was like no other I'd ever felt- it was like I was ripping my very self, my very being, in two. There was sharp pain, both mentally and physically. I felt like my consciousness was splitting in half, something no human or ghost before me has probably ever felt, not even Vlad with his clones. I was aware of both halves, but at the same time, I wasn't. It was like each half of me was blind to the other's thoughts and feelings, even though they still shared them. It was the weirdest thing that's ever happened to me. I hope it never happens again._

_The next thing I remember is the shock I felt as each half of myself looked at the other. There just aren't words to describe the confusion and panic I felt as my human half was unable to go ghost, and my ghost half was unable to become human again. It was odd, how different they looked, and yet how alike. Tucker and Sam were just as freaked out as I was, so there were a few awkward moments between the four (or three, depending on how I answer the question) of us._

_It was then that I got a good look at the different aspects of my personality. The Fenton half of me seemed to have gotten a bit of the laid-back part of me; though he still retained some of his stubbornness and overprotectiveness, it wasn't as noticeable, and he didn't seem as inclined to be the hero as the Phantom half. Phantom must've gotten the heroic, daring parts of me, but he was still stubborn and overprotective, too. Fenton and Phantom looked at each other, and I suppose there was a mutual understanding of the division of roles. Clearly, since Fenton didn't have his ghost powers, he couldn't play the hero anymore, just as Phantom couldn't live his human life anymore. They understood that Phantom was to take the hero job, and Fenton was to relax and be... well, _normal_, for once._

_My two halves couldn't feel what the other felt, so does that mean that I'm two different people? But then again, my Fenton half never feels the beatings my Phantom half takes while fighting ghosts until I transform back. So they do share feelings, just not at the same time. Does that make me half or whole? Ugh, I'm thinking in circles now! Maybe I should move on for the sake of my sanity._

_So then there was the weekend that both parts of me spent away from each other, doing what each one does best. For Fenton, it was hanging out with Tucker and Sam, and going to the movies and bowling like we never have time to do since we spend all our time fighting ghosts. For Phantom, it was full-time hero work, since ghosts don't get tired easily, and I guess that's the job my ghost half's used to. It was hard to get used to, but both halves of me were happy... at least until Technus started totally creaming Phantom. After the incident at the Amity Theme Park, both sides of me agreed to fuse back together, but it ended up being nothing more than Fenton being overshadowed by Phantom. We were confused, Sam, Tucker, and me. We thought it would work, and we soon realized our mistake- the Ghost Catcher had to be involved._

_When I went through again, I didn't feel anything other than a tingling as my powers and humanity were equally divided between the two halves of me, but they were still in separate bodies. It was like cloning myself, only different somehow. Our voices were the same, we looked the same, and we reacted the same way, but we each still had different powers and pieces of our personality, which we found out when we tried to fight Technus. I was working together with myself, using my different personality traits to my advantage. Tucker and Sam weren't sure what to think, and neither was I, really._

_Possibly the only thing weirder than being separated in half is merging the two sides of you together again. It was sort of like the accident with the ghost portal that gave me these powers in the first place, only it was different and more familiar. It was more like a family member coming back to stay with you, or being reunited with your best friend after a long separation. Not exactly, but it's the best way I can describe it. It felt good... more than good... The entire weekend, each half of me had felt like I was incomplete, and the merging was like becoming whole again. _

_The splitting, when I think about it now, reminds me a bit of the fight with my jerky older self, about how the future Vlad had told me that he had ripped out my ghost half and watched as it merged with his Plasmius side in a fit of rage. I'm certain my human self had nothing to do with it and wasn't aware of what my Phantom side was doing, which makes me wonder if I truly am two different people. _

_But, in spite of this, I think the most convincing proof is the way I felt when I was returned to normal. It was a relief when the time came for the different parts of me to become one again- I felt empowered as I got my powers and emotions back into the same body._

_I suppose the only conclusion I can come to is that the two parts of me can't function right without each other- it's a fact. If I were to lose my ghost powers, or if I were to die and become fully ghost, I would lose myself in the process. So I guess the last hour of thinking wasn't for nothing; I've convinced myself that I'm only one person, but with different personality traits than most. And an alter ego, too, but Danny Phantom is as much a part of me as Danny Fenton is. True, I've been Fenton longer than Phantom, but I can't imagine life without my powers anymore._

_I've also got to keep in mind that I'm still only human, or half human, and I need to take care of my human needs, too. Like getting enough sleep before school tomorrow so that I don't flunk Lancer's test and get grounded by my parents, making it harder for myself to go after ghosts, for one. I think I'll work on that one right now._

**Does anyone else find it a bit difficult to write in first person? I had a spot of trouble getting this to where I thought it sounded like Danny's thoughts. To double check myself, I actually read through this mentally with Danny's voice to see if it sounded right. Maybe it's an unconventional way of revision, but hey, it works for me!**


End file.
